NEW DELHI/BENGALURU: The Cauvery water-sharing dispute intensified on Thursday after the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) upheld the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee’s (CWRC) directive ordering Karnataka to release 3,500 cusecs of water daily to Tamil Nadu for 15 days, despite the state’s plea citing severe hydrological distress and concerns over drinking water security.
The decision, taken at the 54th meeting of the CWMA, drew an immediate political and public backlash in Karnataka, with the State Government announcing that it would challenge the order, while farmers and pro-Kannada organisations launched protests in Mandya and Mysuru and other areas, warning against the release of water to the neighbouring state.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister DK Shivakumar has called for an all-party meeting to discuss the Cauvery issue at his home-office ‘Krishna’ on August 2 (Sunday). Shivakumar said that former CMs and MPs and MLAs from the Cauvery basin have been invited.
Presenting its case before the CWMA, Karnataka’s Additional Chief Secretary to Water Resources Department argued that the Cauvery basin is facing one of its worst distress years in recent decades, with inflows into its reservoirs running 65.65% below the 30-year average due to the impact of a severe Super El Niño.
Karnataka maintained that releasing water under the present conditions would jeopardise drinking water supplies and threaten irrigation across the Cauvery basin. Karnataka contended that Tamil Nadu was in a comparatively stronger position as it had already benefited from earlier releases from Karnataka and was expected to receive additional inflows from the North-East Monsoon later this year. It also pointed out that Tamil Nadu continued to have substantial carry-over storage in its reservoirs.
Karnataka further explained that owing to extremely dry riverbed conditions, Karnataka would have to release nearly 7,000 cusecs from its reservoirs to ensure that 3,500 cusecs actually reached the inter-state measuring point at Biligundlu because of significant transmission losses. Officials also informed the authority that Karnataka must conserve nearly 40 tmcft to meet drinking water requirements until June 2027. The state urged the CWMA to keep the CWRC’s July 28 directive in abeyance for at least two weeks and review the situation after assessing fresh rainfall and reservoir inflows.
Tamil Nadu, however, opposed Karnataka’s plea and argued that the prevailing distress conditions warranted even higher releases to safeguard the standing samba crop. It maintained that the Supreme Court-approved water-sharing mechanism must be implemented without deviation.
After hearing both sides, the Cauvery Water Management Authority endorsed the CWRC’s directive and ordered Karnataka to release 3,500 cusecs for 15-days, beginning at 8 am on Thursday.
Meanwhile, Karnataka Water Resources Minister Ramalinga Reddy indicated that the state would explore all legal options to challenge the authority’s decision.
Senior officials said Karnataka would immediately examine the order before initiating further legal proceedings.